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The Choco black-throated trogon (''Trogon cupreicauda''), also known as Kerr's black-throated trogon,Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 27 July 2024. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm retrieved July 28, 2024 is a bird in the family
Trogonidae The trogons and quetzals are birds in the order Trogoniformes which contains only one family, the Trogonidae. The family Trogonidae contains 49 species in seven genera. The fossil record of the trogons dates back 49 million years to the Early ...
, the trogons and quetzals. It is found in
Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
and
Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
.


Taxonomy and systematics

What is now the Choco black-throated trogon was long treated as one of six subspecies of the then "black-throated trogon" (''Trogon rufus'' ''
sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...
''). Starting in 2022, the South American Classification Committee of the
American Ornithological Society The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its ...
(AOS), the
International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...
, and the
Clements taxonomy ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World'' is a book by Jim Clements which presents a list of the bird species of the world. The most recent printed version is the sixth edition (2007), but has been updated yearly, the last version in 202 ...
split the black-throated trogon into four species, one of them being the Choco black-throated trogon.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, G. Del-Rio, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 27 July 2024. "Treat ''Trogon rufus'' (Black-throated Trogon) as consisting of five species, including one newly described (Proposal 921: 24 July 2022)" ''in'' A classification of the bird species of South America: Recent Changes. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCRecentChanges.htm retrieved August 24, 2024Clements, J. F., P.C. Rasmussen, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, A. Spencer, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2023. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2023. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ retrieved October 28, 2023 In this split ''Trogon rufus'' was renamed the
Amazonian black-throated trogon The Amazonian black-throated trogon (''Trogon rufus'') is a bird in the family Trogonidae, the trogons and quetzals. Although it has also been called "yellow-bellied trogon" it is not the only trogon with a yellow belly (such a description wou ...
. However, as of 2024 the North American Classification Committee of the AOS and
BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...
's ''
Handbook of the Birds of the World The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. ...
'' (HBW) have not recognized the split, retaining the six-subspecies black-throated trogon.Chesser, R. T., S. M. Billerman, K. J. Burns, C. Cicero, J. L. Dunn, B. E. Hernández-Baños, R. A. Jiménez, O. Johnson, A. W. Kratter, N. A. Mason, P. C. Rasmussen, and J. V. Remsen, Jr. 2024. Check-list of North American Birds (online). American Ornithological Society. https://checklist.americanornithology.org/taxa/ retrieved August 22, 2024HBW and BirdLife International (2024). Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world. Version 8.1. Available at: https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/taxonomy retrieved August 26, 2024 The Choco black-throated trogon is
monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...
.


Description

Like most trogons, the Choco black-throated has distinctive male and female plumages with soft colorful feathers. This relatively small species is about long. Adult males have a black face and throat with a pale blue ring of bare skin around their eye. They are metallic green on their crown, back, lesser wing
coverts A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts The ear coverts are small feathers behind t ...
, and rump. Their uppertail coverts are bluish. Their flight feathers, primary coverts, and secondary coverts are various patterns of black and white. The upper side of their central pair of tail feathers is bluish with wide black tips. The next two pairs are similar with the addition of black inner webs. The outermost three pairs have black bases, white tips, and black and white bars between. The underside of their tail has black and white bars and a wide white tip. Their upper breast is metallic green and their lower breast and belly are yellow, sometimes with a thin black band below the upper breast. Adult females have mostly olive-brown upperparts; their crown is darker and their rump and uppertail coverts lighter. Their face is olive-brown with a whitish to pale blue ring of bare skin around their eye. Their
primaries Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pri ...
are mostly fuscous-black with a narrow white edge on their outer webs. Their secondaries and their greater and median coverts are copper with a dusky tinge. Their lesser wing coverts are black with brown tips. The upper side of their central pair of tail feathers is rufous-brown to copper with narrow black tips and a faint cinnamon-buff band between the colors. The next two pairs are black with rufous-brown to chestnut edges. The outermost three pairs have black bases, white tips, and black and white bars between. The underside of their tail has black and white bars and a wide white tip. Their throat and upper breast are a paler brown than their back with a white band below the upper breast. Their lower breast and belly are yellow. Males have a mostly bright yellow to yellow-green bill; females' bills are highly variable from black with some yellow to dusky yellow with some black. All ages of both sexes have a dark brown iris. Adults' legs and feet are bluish gray; those of nestlings and juveniles can be pinkish.van Dort, J. and P. Pyle (2023). Choco Black-throated Trogon (''Trogon cupreicauda''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (T. S. Schulenberg and M. A. Bridwell, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.bkttro5.01 retrieved August 30, 2024


Distribution and habitat

The Choco black-throated trogon is found in the Chocó–Magdalena region. Its range extends from the lower
Magdalena River Valley The Magdalena River (, ; less commonly ) is the main river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of its lower reaches, ...
west and then south along the Pacific slope of Colombia into northwestern Ecuador as far as
Pichincha Province Pichincha () is a province of Ecuador located in the northern Sierra region; its capital and largest city is Quito. It is bordered by Imbabura and Esmeraldas to the north, Cotopaxi and Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas to the south, Napo and ...
. It inhabits humid
primary forest An old-growth forest or primary forest is a forest that has developed over a long period of time without Disturbance (ecology), disturbance. Due to this, old-growth forests exhibit unique ecological features. The Food and Agriculture Organizati ...
and mature
secondary forest A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has regenerated through largely natural processes after human-caused Disturbance (ecology), disturbances, such as Logging, timber harvest or agriculture clearing, or ...
. In elevation it ranges from near sea level to in Ecuador and in Colombia.


Behavior

"Trogons and quetzals ''perch erectly with tail hanging downward'', and they may remain motionless and quiet for protracted periods." (emphasis in original)


Movement

The Choco black-throated trogon is a year-round resident throughout its range.


Feeding

The Choco black-throated trogon feeds primarily on insects and also includes fruit in its diet. Nothing else is known about its diet or feeding behavior.


Breeding

Details of the Choco black-throated trogon's breeding biology are scarce. Its nesting season in Columbia includes at least February to May. It nests in a cavity it excavates in a decayed tree or stump. The few observed clutches were of two eggs. Both parents contribute to the excavation, clutch incubation, and nestling care. Other details are assumed to be similar to those of its formerly conspecific northern black-throated trogon, which see
here Here may refer to: Music * ''Here'' (Adrian Belew album), 1994 * ''Here'' (Alicia Keys album), 2016 * ''Here'' (Cal Tjader album), 1979 * ''Here'' (Edward Sharpe album), 2012 * ''Here'' (Idina Menzel album), 2004 * ''Here'' (Merzbow album), ...
.


Vocalization

Male trogons' song is "''far-carrying and hollow...many more will be heard than seen''". (emphasis in original) That of the Choco black-throated trogon is "a slow, regularly spaced series of 4–10, typically 7 nasal, overslurred ''coo'' notes". The species' call is a "''churr''".


Status

The
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
follows HBW taxonomy and so has assessed the undivided black-throated trogon rather than separately assessing the Choco black-throated trogon.


References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q123100630 Choco black-throated trogon Birds of Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena Choco black-throated trogon Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN